1. Field of the Invention
This invention concerns testing of storage tanks in general. More specifically, it relates to testing of tank bottoms for large sized storage tanks.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Heretofore, a difficult task faced by operating personal in the handling and maintenance of large storage tanks has been that of testing tank bottom plates in order to locate leaks therein. Of course, a specially bad leak has been easily found, particularly if it is the result of a broken weld or a large pit in the bottom plate. However, the less obvious leak has always involved a time consuming and difficult task. Furthermore, even when a leak had been found and repaired, there was no assurance that it was properly repaired, or that no further leaks or pinholes existed.
Past methods which have been developed, have employed such techniques as use of a vacuum box, a magnaflux procedure, soap bubbles, and other such techniques for assisting in location of a leak in the bottom plate of a large storage tank. However, such procedures and/or methods have been found to be time consuming and expensive.
Consequently, it is an object of this invention to provide a method of detecting leaks in bottom plate of a large storage tank, which method is quite simple and very effective as well as not very time consuming.